| For Immediate Release: January 31, 2007 |
For more information, contact: Sarah Priestman, 202-478-6159 spriestman@experiencecorps.org |
Older Adults May Provide the Workforce That
Afterschool Programs Need, New Report Finds
Researchers Explore Potential Match Between
Growing Resource and Growing Field
WASHINGTON, DC – Afterschool programs have shown tremendous growth in recent years and will continue to grow, providing students around the country with valuable academic and enrichment opportunities, while creating significant staffing challenges. A new report suggests that adults over 55 – expected to double in number and top 30 percent of the U.S. population by 2030 – present "a rich human resource pool" to meet the afterschool workforce need.
The report, commissioned by Experience Corps and conducted by Policy Studies Associates with support from the Charles Stewart Mott Foundation, examines national data on staffing and program trends in the afterschool field. Researchers also interviewed leaders of high-quality afterschool programs and held focus groups with older adults.
While researchers found tremendous potential for a great match, they also found that the idea was a new one to most older adults and afterschool leaders, and presented both benefits and challenges to both groups.
Afterschool leaders cited the need for qualified staff in a variety of areas, including advanced academics. They cited the potential benefits of hiring older adults – stability, experience, and strong cultural connections to the students – along with perceived challenges in funding, recruitment, and managing a multigenerational workforce.
Older adults expressed a desire to work with children in school settings, citing the emotional rewards, the satisfaction in giving back, and the benefits of staying active. They also cited challenges in recruitment and a perceived lack of structure in afterschool programs.
Still the focus of conversations with researchers returned repeatedly to the potential benefits of the match. "Do seniors realize that they have talents that we can really, really use?" an after-school program director asked. "Are we communicating how much we need those skills? ... There are older folks who are an untapped mine...there are acres of diamonds right in our own neighborhoods. ... Why aren't we mining them?"
And an older adult told researchers, "It’s a win-win situation. Older adults like to be with children, and children listen to them and like sharing their ideas with them...I love doing outreach, showing kids what I know...because it's really helping them."
To make a successful match, the report notes, "requires resources and a systematic strategy." The report includes a series of suggestions, including strengthening the infrastructure of afterschool programs, recruiting staff based on talent rather than age, and rewarding service through modest stipends.
Experience Corps members now serve successfully in afterschool programs in Boston, San Francisco, and Washington, D.C., providing tutoring and mentoring services and, in some cases, leading afterschool activities in areas like gardening and chess.
"Experience Corps members working in afterschool programs have played a pivotal role in the success of the programs, bringing new talents and skills to the table, providing links to students’ culture and language, and mentoring younger staff," says Michelle Hynes, Director of Experience Corps. "And the Experience Corps members have gained tremendously from the arrangement, physically, mentally, emotionally, and socially. It’s time to consider how to expand these efforts."
The report, "Experience After School: Matching Older Adults’ Assets and Interests with Out-of-School Time Needs," was released at a luncheon today at the Case Foundation headquarters. To read the full report, click here.
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Experience Corps, an award-winning program, engages people over 55 in meeting their communities' greatest challenges. Today, in 20 cities across the country, 2,000 Experience Corps members tutor and mentor elementary school students struggling to learn to read. Independent research shows that Experience Corps boosts student academic performance, helps schools and youth-serving organizations become more successful, and enhances the well-being of the older adults in the process. Experience Corps is a signature program of Civic Ventures.
